Council hears inventory of accessibility issues in city

Mar. 19, 2013

Written by

Free Press Staff Writer

Plenty of obstacles remain in Burlington for residents and visitors with ambulatory, sensory and mental disabilities, according to a city committee charged with exploring improvements.

At the City Council meeting Monday night held this week at Burlington High School, Committee on Accessibility Co-chairman Ralph Montefusco began with the obvious: the school auditorium and many other parts of the building are not wheelchair-friendly.

Montefusco said the interim committee has worked to make an inventory of accessibility issues in the city. He said the scope of possible improvements warrants making the committee permanent.

A three-page strategy plan also recommends the inclusion on the committee of representatives from AARP, Burlington Parks and Recreation, Burlington School District and the HowardCenter.

At the invitation of two parents of students with disabilities, Mayor Miro Weinberger agreed to a tour of the high school in a wheelchair.

In other city business:

• The council unanimously approved a process to improve short- and long-term management of the Urban Reserve, or “North 40”

• Lindsey Cox, who manages the grant-driven “Partnership for Change” project in Burlington and Winooski schools, updated city officials on strategies to increase “real-life” education opportunities and “robust learning environments.”

Weinberger, who has set up his office in the high school for the remainder of the week, said he intends to keep learning about how the city might support and benefit local schools.

“From my perspective, the mayor should always be in involved in education issues,” he said.